What is said to have been one of the world’s largest restoration tests on a coral reef ecosystem has been carried out by the Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS) during a mass-spawning event on the Great Barrier Reef (GBR).
The objective was to create a means of fast-tracking coral recovery on degraded reefs whenever action is required.
Spawn was collected to rear millions of young corals, in partnership with locally based groups in the far north of Queensland under the Pilot Deployments Programme (PDP), says AIMS.
It was placed onto northern test reefs Elford, Arlington and Agincourt near Cairns, Port Douglas and around the Keppel Islands respectively, using two different techniques developed under the Reef Restoration & Adaptation Programme (RRAP)
RRAP has involved experts across Australia collaborating to develop and test ways of helping the GBR and other coral reefs to survive climate-induced marine heatwaves in the decades ahead.
Tourism and fishing operators and other marine businesses are being taught how to coral seed on a large scale by AIMS’ PDP director Dr Mark Gibbs and his team, harnessing the businesses’ local knowledge and expertise.
“We’ll gain first-time insights into best-practice approaches, supply chains, technology and the people power needed to build a large-scale operational reef restoration programme and a supporting aquaculture industry,” says Gibbs. “Over the next three years we’ll be improving the efficacy of deploying RRAP interventions at scale on the Great Barrier Reef.”
“As operators who spend our lives on the water, we see first-hand that the reef is under pressure,” says Cairns Reef Fishing general manager Corey Brown. “Being part of this programme reminds us how vital a healthy reef is – not just for tourism and fishing, but for the entire ecosystem that depends on it.
“We want the reef to be thriving for future generations of anglers, families and visitors. Supporting this work is one way we can give back and help protect the place that supports our livelihoods.”
AIMS will monitor the corals over the next 12 months to assess the restoration methods’ effectiveness in terms of survival, growth and response to stressors such as bleaching and competition with algae.
The PDP is funded by the Australian government’s Reef Trust and led by AIMS, while RRAP is funded by a partnership between the Reef Trust and the Great Barrier Reef Foundation.
